THE KEY LINK AT ITS BEST, THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN A COACH AND HIS QUARTERBACK CAN ELEVATE A TEAM. AT ITS WORST, IT CAN DESTROY AN ENTIRE SEASON

Troy Aikman remembers standing in the pouring rain, his passesand his composure slipping away. It was Halloween 1993 inPhiladelphia, and Aikman was living in a quarterback's house ofhorrors. His Dallas Cowboys were clinging to a three-point leadover the Eagles, and Aikman's waterlogged throws were asaccurate as Darryl Strawberry's income tax returns.

After watching yet another incomplete pass slide off his hand,Aikman stomped to the sideline, picked up the telephone andbegan talking with his mentor, Cowboy offensive coordinator NorvTurner. During this crisis the bond between the two men wasdownright inspiring.

Actually, the salty banter between quarterback and mentor spoketo the health of their relationship. Aikman and Turner, who isnow coach of the Washington Redskins, fought through theirfrustration and forged ahead with the game plan. "He and I wouldyell at each other a lot of times, and that game was maybe theworst of them," Aikman says. "But we wouldn't take it to heart.We had the ability to truly tell one another how we felt,without having to worry about the other getting upset."

The two men escaped from the City of Brotherly Love that daywith a 23-10 victory. Three months later the Cowboys won theirsecond straight Super Bowl. Virtually every successful team hasa mentor--be it the head coach, offensive coordinator orquarterbacks coach--with whom the quarterback has a significant,thriving relationship. The chemistry that existed between Aikmanand Turner was a key element in Dallas's winning equation.

"Without question, it's the most important relationship on ateam," says quarterback guru Bill Walsh, who coached the SanFrancisco 49ers to three Super Bowl triumphs. "That's becausethe quarterback is under such tremendous stress. The entiredefensive team is after him, and consciously or unconsciously itwants to knock him out of the game. He's being threatened, andif he doesn't get full support around him or doesn't haveconfidence in the person calling the plays, he's going tocrumble."

While standing on the Veterans Stadium turf that dreary day,Aikman knew he was prepared for battle. But without a calming,commanding presence on the sideline or in the coaches' box, evenan experienced signal-caller can be undone. "It's like beinglost out there," says former Redskin and Philadelphia Eagle Hallof Famer Sonny Jurgensen. "I had eight head coaches in 18 years;I know what it is to have help or not."

Helping the quarterback survive and thrive may be the toughestcoaching job in sports. The mentor must, at times, be ababysitter and a slave driver. From July to January he may spendmore time with the quarterback than he does with his wife. Thementor must establish a bond, but without getting so close tohis pupil that respect vanishes.

The mentor's first chore is to assess his pupil's mechanics.Then he can either fine-tune or overhaul the quarterback'sdelivery and footwork. The coach's next job is to establish thequarterback's timing, perhaps the most essential aspect of anypasser's repertoire. In 1971 Walsh took the Cincinnati Bengals'Virgil Carter--a quarterback who, by Walsh's admission, "reallydidn't have the tools"--and turned him into the AFC's mostaccurate passer. Walsh compensated for Carter's lack of armstrength by developing a timed passing game in which most ballswere thrown eight to 10 yards down the field.

Winning the quarterback's trust--and bolstering his confidence--isthe mentor's next responsibility. Finally, the mentor must be aninnovative producer of game plans that play to the quarterback'sstrengths. Of equal importance is the mentor's ability toexplain the plan to the quarterback in the days leading up tothe game, because game day is too late to talk theory.

The best of the mentors--from the Green Bay Packers' legendarycoach Curly Lambeau, who guided quarterback Cecil Isbell and endDon Hutson to the Hall of Fame, to the much-traveled SidGillman to present-day gurus like Walsh, Turner and DenverBronco coach Mike Shanahan--are granted cult-hero status by theirpupils. John Elway, for example, says that he will be "twice thequarterback" he has been over the previous three seasons nowthat Shanahan is back in Denver, where he was the offensivecoordinator from 1985 to '87. "There have been a lot ofquarterbacks stuck in bad coach-player relationships," says 49erquarterback Steve Young, last year's regular-season and SuperBowl MVP. "When quarterbacks sit down together, those are thethings we talk about; we recognize that we're not independentcontractors. We try to coordinate things on the field, and ifyou don't have a guy off the field trying to do the same thing,it's a problem."

While All-Pros like Young, Aikman and Dan Marino of the MiamiDolphins have been groomed by some of the game's best teachers,and emerging star Drew Bledsoe appears to be well positioned forsuccess under the tutelage of New England Patriot coach BillParcells, many other talented passers have not been asfortunate. One reason for the oft discussed dearth of productiveyoung quarterbacks may be the scarcity of capable mentors on NFLcoaching staffs. "It's the worst-coached position in theleague," says Jurgensen, now a Redskin radio commentator.

Says Walsh, who also developed Dan Fouts of the San DiegoChargers and the Niners' Joe Montana, "People are moreinterested in studying strategies--like how to beat the nickeldefense--than in the basics of coaching the quarterback. Teachingquarterbacking is not the strongest point in the NFL, but it'sgetting better."

One sign of improvement is the growing presence of thequarterback coach. A decade ago the job was a novelty on NFLstaffs--sometimes the offensive coordinator filled both jobs--but14 of the league's 30 teams will enter the season with a manspecifically designated to coach the position. This developmentis welcomed by Gillman, whose attention to the position datesback to Hall of Famer Norm Van Brocklin in their days with theLos Angeles Rams of the 1950s.

"Here's a guy who handles every ball that comes from center,"says Gillman, "and still they're just getting around to gettingquarterback coaches. It's crazy. If I were a young man andcoaching a team, the first thing I'd do is find the smartest guyaround and hire him as the quarterback coach."

Another measure of the growing importance of the job can be seenin the number of coaches who have used it as a springboard tohead jobs. In addition to Shanahan and Turner, the Packers' MikeHolmgren and the Atlanta Falcons' June Jones are head coacheswho won their jobs in the '90s because of their skill inhandling quarterbacks. Playing for one of these men, or for anoted mentor like Houston Oiler offensive coordinator JerryRhome, can have a profound impact on a career. For everyMontana, who teamed with Walsh in San Francisco to produce asystem that made both men legends, there is a Jeff George, abionic-armed No. 1 overall draft pick who began to flourish onlyafter he left the Indianapolis Colts following the 1993 seasonand hooked up with Jones in Atlanta.

Jurgensen recalls watching George in his rookie year inIndianapolis, when Ron Meyer was the Colt coach. "Meyer askedme, 'What do you think of my boy?'" Jurgensen says. "I told himthat some of his fundamentals needed improving, that he loathesgoing backwards, that he throws off-balance and doesn't gethimself set. I asked, 'Who's your quarterback coach?' He told mehe didn't have one. I said, 'How can you bring in a guy and givehim millions and not work with him?'"

Similar questions have been asked before, for example when thePatriots selected Jim Plunkett with the No. 1 overall pick in1971. "He was not brought along as he should have been," Walshsays. "His life was saved when he left New England. And thenthere was Archie Manning, who I think was one of the greatestquarterbacks ever. He went through a series of coaches and teamswith terrible chemistry that weren't as committed as he was towinning."

Manning is a case study in how lack of continuity can hamper aquarterback's development. He spent virtually all his 14-yearcareer with the New Orleans Saints (1971 to '82), and he playedunder eight head coaches and 11 offensive coordinators. Havingto constantly adapt to new systems kept Manning from blossominginto a pure pro passer early in his career. "I played yourtypical college system [at Mississippi], a sprint-out offensewhere the quarterback has a pass-run option," says Manning. "Theonly time I ever dropped back to pass was when we were waybehind."

Recently Manning and his son Peyton, now the startingquarterback at Tennessee, watched films of Archie's seniorseason at Ole Miss in 1970. "He was laughing his head off,"Archie says. "I was terrible. I was dropping too far back,looking behind me--all the things you see when you go to a highschool quarterback camp."

Marino came from a more advanced passing system at Pitt, but thereal difference was the way in which he was treated by coach DonShula, a master at adapting to his personnel. Shula had gone toSuper Bowls not only with Bob Griese, a good passer, but alsowith David Woodley, whose physical skills were limited. Shulapaid extra attention to Marino, threw him into the lineup almostimmediately in his rookie season of 1983 and, since then, hasconstructed an offense around the medium and deep passes towhich his quarterback is suited.

A few years ago it seemed as though Young might go the way ofManning. Though tutored at various times by Gillman, Walsh,Holmgren and Shanahan, he had yet to carry a team to achampionship. However, last year, his third with Shanahan ashis offensive coordinator, Young, who was once criticized forhis failure to read defenses and his penchant for making hastydecisions, evolved into the league's dominant player. "So muchof that was due to Mike," Young says. "He created in me a desireto prepare harder. And the more willing I was to get ready, themore he was able to fill me up with substantive stuff."

Toward the end of last season Young and Shanahan wereanticipating one another's thoughts as though they were twins.Says Young, "We mapped out the Super Bowl, and I've neverexperienced anything like that. It was exactly what he hadenvisioned."

Says Shanahan: "When the quarterback is on the field, I feel asif I'm on the field, and if he doesn't make the right decision,I'm looking at myself making a mistake."

Shanahan's relationship with another premier signal-caller,Elway, makes for an even more intriguing study of the mentor'srole. When Shanahan joined Dan Reeves's Bronco staff as the widereceivers coach in 1984, he earned Elway's respect by joininghim in workouts and weightlifting sessions and pushing him tothrow in the off-season. When Elway tried to beg off with theexcuse that no receivers were in town, Shanahan would lace uphis sneakers and run patterns for him in Piney Creek Park.

When Shanahan left to coach the Raiders in 1988, a great deal ofstrain developed between Elway and Reeves. After being fired byRaider owner Al Davis during the 1989 season, Shanahan returnedto Denver, first as the quarterbacks coach, then as of fensivecoordinator. Elway's mood perked up, but Reeves fired Shanahanafter the '91 season, resulting in an open clash between Elwayand Reeves that led to Reeves's being fired the next year.

"It's almost like when Mike left there was more responsibilityon me," Elway says, "because the coach that came in [Jim Fassel]didn't do things the same way and wasn't as organized. I had agood relationship with Fassel, but he had only been in profootball one year when he came here. There were times when I hadto teach him the game. Plus, Mike was kind of my buffer. I couldtell Mike what I was thinking, and Mike could go talk to Danabout it, and Dan would yea or nay it. With Mike gone, Dan and Iclashed."

Now Shanahan is back in Denver, but with more responsibility,meaning his relationship with Elway must change. In addition,the new offensive coordinator, Gary Kubiak, was Elway's backup,drinking buddy and roommate on the road for nine seasons.Sensing the distance their new situation will require, Elway hasavoided acting chummy toward Kubiak in the presence ofteammates. But the true test will come during games, when Kubiakwill demand that Elway defer to his authority. "A coach has tobe able to jump on your butt," Elway says. "Otherwise you don'thave that same respect."

Walsh agrees: "The relationship can't be so familiar that thequarterback doesn't take his coach seriously. A lot of thesecoaches are overwhelmed by the significance of the quarterback.They're in awe of him. They're just pleased to be in thequarterback's company. So they become an errand boy."

When asked to cite an example of the mentor-quarterbackrelationship at its best, Elway recalls a game in the late '80s.He doesn't remember the opponent, the year or the location, buthe does recall a chat with Shanahan that included a lot ofnon-FCC-approved language.

"We were on the phone, and it got ugly, so I just hung up onhim," recalls Elway. "He came up to me after the game, put hisfinger in my chest and said, 'Don't you ever hang up on meagain.' Then I apologized, and we both started laughing. That'sthe type of relationship we had."

B/W PHOTO: H.O.F. NFL PHOTOS Lambeau drew up revolutionary pass plays for the Packers that helped turn Isbell (center) and Hutson into Hall of Famers. [Curly Lambeau, Cecil Isbell and Don Hutson diagramming play]TWO COLOR PHOTOS: PETER READ MILLER Elway (7) is thrilled to have Shanahan back in Denver, where he ran the offense before guiding Young to an MVP season. [John Elway; Steve Young]COLOR PHOTO: JIM GUND [See caption above--Mike Shanahan]COLOR PHOTO: MANNY MILLANManning was supremely gifted but never reached his full potential because he played for a series of mediocre teachers. [Archie Manning]COLOR PHOTO: RICHARD MACKSON Walsh, who could make a good passer better, took Montana, a very good one, and made him the best. [Bill Walsh and Joe Montana]